wit

[ wit ]

/ wɪt /

noun

the keen perception and cleverly apt expression of those connections between ideas that awaken amusement and pleasure.

speech or writing showing such perception and expression.

a person having or noted for such perception and expression.

understanding, intelligence, or sagacity; astuteness.

Usually wits.

powers of intelligent observation, keen perception, ingenious contrivance, or the like; mental acuity, composure, and resourcefulness: using one's wits to get ahead.
mental faculties; senses: to lose one's wits; frightened out of one's wits.

QUIZZES

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PUNCTUATION QUIZ

Punctuation marks help make writing easy to read and understand. Some of the most important ones are the period (.), comma (,), question mark (?), and exclamation point (!). How well do you know how to use them? Find out in this quiz!

Question 1 of 10

Which punctuation mark is best for this sentence? "Can I watch a movie __"

comma (,)

period (.)

question mark (?)

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms for wit

at one's wit's end. at the end of one's ideas or mental resources; perplexed: My two-year-old won't eat anything but pizza, and I'm at my wit's end.

keep/have one's wits about one, to remain alert and observant; be prepared for or equal to anything: to keep your wits about you in a crisis.

live by one's wits, to provide for oneself by employing ingenuity or cunning; live precariously: We traveled around the world, living by our wits.

Origin of wit

First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English: “mind, thought”; cognate with German Witz, Old Norse vit; akin to wit²

SYNONYMS FOR wit

1 drollery, facetiousness, waggishness, repartee.

2 banter, joking, witticism, quip, raillery, badinage, persiflage; bon mot.

3 wag, jester, epigrammatist, satirist.

4 wisdom, sense, mind.

5a cleverness, cunning, wisdom, insight, perspicacity, sagaciousness, acumen.

5b mind, sanity; brains, marbles.

synonym study for wit

See humor.

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH wit

whit wit

Words nearby wit

wist, wister, wisteria, wistful, wisła, wit, witan, witblits, witch, witch alder, witch ball

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

British Dictionary definitions for live by one's wits (1 of 2)

wit¹

/ (wɪt) /

noun

the talent or quality of using unexpected associations between contrasting or disparate words or ideas to make a clever humorous effect

speech or writing showing this quality

a person possessing, showing, or noted for such an ability, esp in repartee

practical intelligence (esp in the phrase have the wit to)

Scot and Northern English dialect information or knowledge (esp in the phrase get wit of)

archaic mental capacity or a person possessing it

obsolete the mind or memory

Word Origin for wit

Old English witt; related to Old Saxon giwitt, Old High German wizzi (German Witz), Old Norse vit, Gothic witi. See wit ²

British Dictionary definitions for live by one's wits (2 of 2)

wit²

/ (wɪt) /

verb

archaic to be or become aware of (something)

adverb

to wit that is to say; namely (used to introduce statements, as in legal documents)

Word Origin for wit

Old English witan; related to Old High German wizzan (German wissen), Old Norse vita, Latin vidēre to see

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Idioms and Phrases with live by one's wits (1 of 2)

live by one's wits

Manage by clever expedience rather than hard work or wealth. For example, Alan's never held a steady job but manages to live by his wits. This expression uses wits in the sense of “keen mental faculties.” [c. 1600]

Idioms and Phrases with live by one's wits (2 of 2)

wit

see at one's wit's end; have one's wits about one; live by one's wits; scare out of one's wits; to wit.